The Ramblers - Derbyshire Dales Group

A Walk Through the Cinque Terre

The Cinque Terre (the Five Villages) are a part of the Ligurian coastline of Italy and an alluring destination for walkers and lovers of art and history, as well as the jet-setting and yachting fraternity.  Liguria is situated on the north-west coast of Italy and is generally known as the Italian Riviera, bordering with the French Riviera to the west and Tuscany to the south.  It is separated from the plains of northern Italy by the Appennine Mountains, which along this part of the coast plunge steeply and dramatically into the Mediterranean Sea.

Our holiday was based along the Riviera di Levante, and it took us from the chic and expensive resort of Portofino in the north, through the Cinque Terre to the medieval town of Portovenere in the south. The Cinque Terre themselves, Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore, are small villages, each tucked or perched on the hillsides and separated from each other by the steep and rocky cliffs that overlook the sea. Although only between one and five kilometres apart, the villages have very poor road connections because of the nature of the terrain. The joy for walkers lies in the network of footpaths that cling precariously to the rocky slopes, or wind their way through the beautifully cultivated terraces of olive trees, lemon groves and vineyards that line the hillsides. But it is a different story for the hordes of tourists that visit the Cinque Terre on a daily basis. For them, access is by train or more scenically by ferry, and most of them do not progress further than the delightful cafes, bars and restaurants of the little towns. With their beautiful medieval houses, painted in a palette of greens, ochres gold and pinks, they now constitute a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We took our 10 day walking holiday just after Easter this year and we were lucky to have glorious weather throughout, although we learned that the corresponding week in 2010 was very wet. The walks were not particularly long, but the challenge lay mostly in the steep and rugged nature of the trails. We were also advised that some of the paths were not suitable for those who suffer from vertigo. On our first day we rounded off the walk with a long, steep, toe-crushing descent to the little town of Portofino, with its pretty harbour lined with colourful houses, and the bay filled with expensive yachts. Apparently Silvio Berlusconi has a villa there which our taxi driver described as his “bunga-bunga house”.  After cooling our aching feet in the clear water on the quayside, we made our way to one of the many bars overlooking the harbour, and without asking to see a menu (fools!) ordered a beer and a fresh lemon juice with ice. Having enjoyed our drinks , with the attendant views of the yachting fraternity at play, we were both amused and appalled to receive a bill for 16 Euros. The same drinks in a beach-side cafe near our hotel cost 5.50 Euros, so they must have seen us coming.

All our walks were characterised by the beauty of the landscape; the combination of mountains and sea is just irresistible. Early summer is a wonderful time for wild flowers and the Ligurian coastline did not disappoint us. We saw many varieties of orchid and a beautiful bright pink wild gladiolus. Our holiday ended with a day of sight-seeing in Pisa before flying home. The Italian landscape and food made a holiday that would be hard to beat. Once back home, browsing in a charity shop looking for a jigsaw, I was delighted to find one that reproduces this accompanying view of Vernazza. If only doing the jigsaw was as easy as taking the photo!

Janet Byrne

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